Former Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), a populist conservative who built a reputation for skewering both political parties, slammed the notion that the alt-right is a large component of support for Donald Trump, stating on MSNBC’s “Meet The Press Daily” that the group is a “total fringe” movement.
In a speech last week, Democratic presidential nomineee Hillary Clinton lambasted the Republican party, claiming that a “radical fringe” was taking over the GOP. In response, Coburn pointed out that the purpose of Clinton’s speech was to divert attention away from a damning Associated Press report which revealed that during her tenure as Secretary of State, a majority of Clinton’s meetings were with Clinton Foundation donors.
“This is all just to shift away from what the facts are in the race,” Coburn, a former senator and obstetrician, told MSNBC.
“It’s total fringe,” Coburn said of the extremist online movement that broadcasts its hatred of minorities. “It isn’t a component of the Donald Trump movement.”
“It’s what’s out there and you’re always going to hear from them,” Coburn said. “[Trump] may enliven some of their conversation, but he doesn’t embrace it.”
